The key facts

  • The husband of the accused woman pleaded guilty to 62 offences, including rape; four others also admitted guilt
  • The woman's husband pleaded guilty to 62 offences, including rape; four others also admitted their guilt
  • Nine men are on trial denying all charges; among them are a paramedic, a taxi driver and a football coach
  • The investigation began after journalists infiltrated a Telegram channel in October 2025
  • The investigation began after journalists gained access to a Telegram channel in October 2025

Trial in Manchester

A trial has begun at Minshull Street Crown Court in Manchester of nine men who deny all charges of rape and sexual assault of an unconscious woman — reports BBC News. According to the prosecution, her husband spent years giving his wife a 'knockout cocktail' and, from at least 2023 onwards, invited strangers to the family home in the Stockport area (Greater Manchester) to rape her while she was unconscious. The husband and four other men have already pleaded guilty to a number of charges.

A 'double life' and a million files

Prosecutor Louise Oakley KC told the jury that the couple looked like spouses awaiting retirement, but the husband had been posting recordings of abuse of his wife online since 2004. When his Samsung Galaxy phone was seized, detectives found more than a million photographs and videos which, according to Oakley, gave the police 'almost a script' of the crimes of both the husband and the defendants. 'Their depravity seems to have known no bounds,' she said. Judge Maurice Greene warned the jury in advance that they would have to view material capable of causing 'distress and anger'.

The defendants and the defence line

Among the defendants are the so-called 'contact' accused: paramedic Jonathan Kirk (43), taxi driver Philip Wild (59), amateur football coach Alan Keelan (42), recruitment agency employee Mohammed Sabir (28), Jordan Wallace (31), a building materials company worker, tinsmith Richard Townsend (37) and pensioner Robert Stewart (70). Two — Daniel Rayner and David Graves — are described as 'non-contact': according to the prosecution, they did not come to the house but encouraged the abuse or assisted in other ways. Oakley warned that the defence may argue that the woman was merely pretending to be asleep as part of a role play; the prosecution called this a 'smoke screen': 'It was rape and sexual assault, plain and simple'.

Link to the Pelicot case and the course of the investigation

The investigation began after, in October 2025, a team of investigative journalists infiltrated a channel on the Telegram messenger where users, it turned out, were sharing images of abuse of apparently unconscious women. One user who claimed he drugged and raped his wife was linked to a phone number registered to the husband, which allowed Greater Manchester Police to obtain a search warrant. In a protected folder on the phone named 'visits', material and messengers used to communicate with the defendants were found. The husband pleaded guilty to 62 offences, including rape, administering substances with intent, distributing intimate images and violent acts; he will give evidence as a witness. Guilty pleas were also entered by Keith Fotheringham (59, Dundee, Scotland), Sean Peers (38, Stockport), Graham Brougham (74, Northwich, Cheshire) and Karl Lindsay (55, Taunton, Somerset).

Reference to the French case

The prosecution read out a message from Robert Stewart to the husband, sent, according to the prosecution, a few hours after a rape in September 2025: 'Delete all the images from the phone, it's too risky. Remember what happened to that guy in France. Delete me from the phone and from your life.' Oakley reminded the jury that the 'guy in France' was the man who raped his wife Gisèle Pelicot. The trial continues.

A court sketch of nine men sitting in a dock inside a courtroom. Defendants: Back row L-R: Alan Keelan, prison staff, Richard Townsend and Jonathan Kirk. Front row L-R: Philip Wild, Daniel Rayner, Mohammed Sabir, prison staff and Jordan Wallace.Image source, Nick Lewis/ BBC
Image caption,

Nine men are on trial accused of abusing an unconscious woman at the invitation of her husband

A composite image of three of the defendants - one is bald with an earring and has a big beard, the other is in a green uniform with brown hair and the other is in a black zip-up top with curly hair, a beard and earrings
Image caption,

Alan Keelan, Jonathan Kirk and Jordan Wallace deny the charges against them

A man in his 70s, with white hair and wearing a light grey shirt with a blue tie, looks past the camera with a blank expression.Image source, Reuters
Image caption,

Graham Brougham, 74, changed his plea to guilty at an earlier hearing

A man in his 30s, with a large beard, grey wool hat and blue puffer coat, stands outside a stone building holding a black vape to his mouth.Image source, PA Media
Image caption,

Sean Peers, 38, changed his plea to guilty and admitted sexually assaulting the woman earlier this month